It's my first lesson during the day at Gosling Stables. I've been looking forward to this lesson for 2 weeks now. But, I'm a bit apprehensive because I'm riding with the advanced kids today since ADW is away on business. I'm apprehensive because I'm scared I won't be able to keep up.
It's the first for a few things today, including breakin' out my own grooming kit. I also have to go out to get Ariel. The weather up in these parts at this time of year is a bit harsh and it's windy and wet. I head out to the paddocks and when I see Ariel with the other mares, I know she eyes me too. She bucks at another mare and trots my way. It's as if she knows I've come for her. She walks right to the gate and I slip her halter on and head inside. She holds her head nice and high as if she's excited to be going indoors. I'm not sure if it's because she's expecting breakfast, a warm stall... but it can't be to work, right? She's very accommodating when I'm grooming her so I suppose that she's just as happy going to work as she is getting breakfast.
I have to remember to be careful to ride with a light rein because she doesn't like a lot of pressure in her mouth. In the class too is Ariel's nemesis: Bonspiel. For some reason, they really dislike one another and given the opportunity, would probably kick each other to smitherines. It's a good class though. We work on some technical stuff to initiate the impulsion from their hinds during trot but collect it. It's probably quite elementary at this point but it's difficult to accomplish! I'm asked to squeeze inside leg and half halt the outside rein during the rising portion of the posting trot.
We get some canter going and I need to keep her in check because a few times she speeds off. I sit tight and remember to do a few half halts to remind her that I'm still there and bring her down a little bit. The best thing about this mare is that she's responsive to leg aids. What a pleasure to ride with your legs instead of your hands.
We work on transitions up and down with the aim of having a timely response to our aids. Ariel's being a teeny bit grouchy today and isn't responding as quickly to as light a touch. But, Sheri mentions that today, my hands have not been steady and were bouncing a bit and not consistent which probably meant I caught her mouth. I probably shouldn't have raked as much of the yard yesterday just before riding.
Cool out involves bareback walking out and I ride her with just my legs and let her a loose rein. This mare's got next to no whither and thus has the most comfortable bareback ride! I am actually looking forward to getting to ride her with bareback and trot!
I also learned today, I'm riding a "trick pony"! Not the kind that is used in vaulting or trick riding... but that she knows how to do things for treats! She can 'smile', 'kiss' and 'bow' for treats!
Posting Diagonal Jar Tally: 2 x $2.00 = $4.00
To date: $23.00
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Saturday, November 9, 2013
Two Reviews: The Hunger Games
I'm so far down the rabbit hole on this one I'm not sure I can really get into anything else until I'm "allowed" to get into the second part of this trilogy. Going from deciding this is a lame story for kids, to thinking about the characters and their motives while I'm raking leaves... seriously. So far down. But, despite this, I'm moving right along this month. I picked up the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins more out of curiosity than anything else. It seems like a lot of what I've been reading lately has not been planned! But, that's part of the fun.
The Hunger Games was written several years back but has become a huge hit and was made into a movie. I probably don't need to hype it up much more than that since Jennifer Lawrence has become a household name. This series was written for youth, but, it's surprisingly gruesome and violent (granted, that's up to your imagination) and gained a wide following. I finished reading the book in a work week. As usual, this fictional story took time to pull me in; it didn't take long though. Collins uses a first person present perspective through the eyes of the book's protagonist, Katniss Everdeen. Because of this style, she writes simply and to the point; we are in the mind of Katniss experiencing each moment as she is. This is not a story telling but rather, a live account of a character's life. We're brought into the story through the eyes and thoughts of Katniss.
The story is set in a dystopian future where the people live in Panem--the remnants of North America. The rich and advanced live in the Capitol, enslaving the surrounding districts by exploiting them for specific purposes. This keeps each of the districts in some sort of oppressed state where they live to provide and work for the citizens of the Capitol. We are provided little background about what happened for the world to arrive at this state of opposing wealth and extreme poverty.
I'm not sure if Collins had the intention to talk about specific themes in the book but my take of the primary theme is that it's a satire of reality television. The games themselves are staged and controlled in a way which the gamemakers analyze and create situations to improve ratings in the Capitol. Though all the districts are required to watch, not for entertainment but because they are forced to, in part of the punishment of their Treaty of Treason, the people of the Capitol watch purely for entertainment. They have no connection to the tributes whereas those in the districts are hoping that their tribute won't die. It's a matter of survival for those of the district and for fun, in the Capitol. The lives of those in the districts is hard and real whereas those living in the Capitol are seemingly frivolous and fake. Even in one part of the book, Katniss reflects about the absurd values that those in the Capitol have about appearance.
I couldn't read the book and not watch the movie--especially since it was released on Netflix. The movie was pretty true to the story of the book but as expected, could not capture the first person present perspective and as someone who read the book before watching the movie (never ever read the book AFTER watching the movie!), I found it shallow and lacking depth of character. In addition to this, the camera angles and styles the director chose was making me sick! I suspect it was done to capture the first person perspective of the action but I was eating dinner watching it and had to sit further away during chase scenes so I could keep my meal down.
Nevertheless, I am excited about the second installment of the trilogy and am anticipating my literary palette cleanser before falling back down the rabbit hole ;)
The Hunger Games was written several years back but has become a huge hit and was made into a movie. I probably don't need to hype it up much more than that since Jennifer Lawrence has become a household name. This series was written for youth, but, it's surprisingly gruesome and violent (granted, that's up to your imagination) and gained a wide following. I finished reading the book in a work week. As usual, this fictional story took time to pull me in; it didn't take long though. Collins uses a first person present perspective through the eyes of the book's protagonist, Katniss Everdeen. Because of this style, she writes simply and to the point; we are in the mind of Katniss experiencing each moment as she is. This is not a story telling but rather, a live account of a character's life. We're brought into the story through the eyes and thoughts of Katniss.
The story is set in a dystopian future where the people live in Panem--the remnants of North America. The rich and advanced live in the Capitol, enslaving the surrounding districts by exploiting them for specific purposes. This keeps each of the districts in some sort of oppressed state where they live to provide and work for the citizens of the Capitol. We are provided little background about what happened for the world to arrive at this state of opposing wealth and extreme poverty.
I'm not sure if Collins had the intention to talk about specific themes in the book but my take of the primary theme is that it's a satire of reality television. The games themselves are staged and controlled in a way which the gamemakers analyze and create situations to improve ratings in the Capitol. Though all the districts are required to watch, not for entertainment but because they are forced to, in part of the punishment of their Treaty of Treason, the people of the Capitol watch purely for entertainment. They have no connection to the tributes whereas those in the districts are hoping that their tribute won't die. It's a matter of survival for those of the district and for fun, in the Capitol. The lives of those in the districts is hard and real whereas those living in the Capitol are seemingly frivolous and fake. Even in one part of the book, Katniss reflects about the absurd values that those in the Capitol have about appearance.
I couldn't read the book and not watch the movie--especially since it was released on Netflix. The movie was pretty true to the story of the book but as expected, could not capture the first person present perspective and as someone who read the book before watching the movie (never ever read the book AFTER watching the movie!), I found it shallow and lacking depth of character. In addition to this, the camera angles and styles the director chose was making me sick! I suspect it was done to capture the first person perspective of the action but I was eating dinner watching it and had to sit further away during chase scenes so I could keep my meal down.
Nevertheless, I am excited about the second installment of the trilogy and am anticipating my literary palette cleanser before falling back down the rabbit hole ;)
Monday, November 4, 2013
The Royal 2013
It's been weeks since I've ridden outdoors and it's the start of a new fiscal year at work. Fall is my favourite time of year because the bugs are gone and the weather is comfortable. And right after Halloween, it's time to visit the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair and see the animals, food and farming. This year, we've chosen to watch the rodeo and this time, I'm prepared for photos with a zoomy lens and great seats! Amber Marshall is co-hosting with Ross. Who's Ross? I don't know because I can't find any information on him! :(
We started out checking out the Angus competition with ADW drooling all over the place thinking about steak and hamburger...
Now onto the big show! :D
I hope these photos gave you a sampling of the day ADW and I had at the Royal :)
We started out checking out the Angus competition with ADW drooling all over the place thinking about steak and hamburger...
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| Angus calf |
Now onto the big show! :D
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| Amber & Ross |
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| Bareback Bronc |
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| Pole Bending! |
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| Trick Riding |
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| Guy Mclean, Aussie horse whisperer |
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| Barrel Racing |
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| More Barrel Racing! |
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| Yeehaw! |
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| The most dangerous sport in the world |
I hope these photos gave you a sampling of the day ADW and I had at the Royal :)
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Lesson #60: More Leg!
Today is the last lesson that ADW and I are taking at Greyden. It makes me sad that I won't be riding there any more because I've grown attached to some of the horses, like Trinket. Although this mare is difficult to ride, she's one of my favourite ponies. There's something about her that I am drawn to. Tonight's lesson started out with the usual warm up of trotting around. Already, I'm caught for my first missed posting diagonal.
The class is focused on bending. We use 20m circles at trot to prepare for our bending. I try to ride with a lighter rein with Trinket because the last lesson with Trinket proved that she responded much better when I wasn't heavy with her face. She kept her head up and moved forward. Today she seemed a bit dull and didn't really seem to want to get into doing much. I had to encourage her frequently, even in trot. And, as expected, in corners she'd get even slower and I needed to use more inside leg to tell her to continue to move forward and bend too. More leg!
To incorporate bending and keeping moving, we did trot poles at angles with the goal to continue in the same pace at turns and to keep moving forward. This proved to be a particularly challenging exercise because Trinket was predictably slowing when turning. More leg!
To finish up the lesson, we're moving into canter. I find myself falling forward again with my upper back rounding over and my hands dropping and Trinket getting into a pony trot. I ride the pony trot better than I have in the past but it still isn't something that I'm excited to do. When she gets into a canter, I realize my weight is almost always in the balls of my foot and not in my heels. Hence, the flopping forwards. I always have to readjust myself once I get into the canter but this is becoming a problem because she takes this need to adjust as an opportunity to either transition down into a trot or switch her lead. Both are equally frustrating because I can't seem to get a full go around of the canter. We try several times and eventually get it. I had to really tell her to get into a canter because wouldn't listen to me asking. More leg!
To keep her from drifting into the corners, I'm reminded to use my inside leg to push her out. Learning to get her to do things from leg aids can be challenging too... as many schoolies sort of just tune you out. So the nudges I give her aren't enough. More leg!
We finish the lesson with leg aid riding only. It's tough but I get through it by getting her to turn with my legs only. Granted, it's only at a walk but I'm sure I would probably be in big trouble if we were trotting (or faster) with only leg aids. But, riding is not about the hands; it's about riding with your seat and legs. An incredible performance can be seen in Heartland episode 18 of season 5 when Amy auditions for Dark Horse.
Posting Diagonal Jar Tally: 3.5 x $2.00 = $7.00
To date: $19.00
The class is focused on bending. We use 20m circles at trot to prepare for our bending. I try to ride with a lighter rein with Trinket because the last lesson with Trinket proved that she responded much better when I wasn't heavy with her face. She kept her head up and moved forward. Today she seemed a bit dull and didn't really seem to want to get into doing much. I had to encourage her frequently, even in trot. And, as expected, in corners she'd get even slower and I needed to use more inside leg to tell her to continue to move forward and bend too. More leg!
To incorporate bending and keeping moving, we did trot poles at angles with the goal to continue in the same pace at turns and to keep moving forward. This proved to be a particularly challenging exercise because Trinket was predictably slowing when turning. More leg!
To finish up the lesson, we're moving into canter. I find myself falling forward again with my upper back rounding over and my hands dropping and Trinket getting into a pony trot. I ride the pony trot better than I have in the past but it still isn't something that I'm excited to do. When she gets into a canter, I realize my weight is almost always in the balls of my foot and not in my heels. Hence, the flopping forwards. I always have to readjust myself once I get into the canter but this is becoming a problem because she takes this need to adjust as an opportunity to either transition down into a trot or switch her lead. Both are equally frustrating because I can't seem to get a full go around of the canter. We try several times and eventually get it. I had to really tell her to get into a canter because wouldn't listen to me asking. More leg!
To keep her from drifting into the corners, I'm reminded to use my inside leg to push her out. Learning to get her to do things from leg aids can be challenging too... as many schoolies sort of just tune you out. So the nudges I give her aren't enough. More leg!
We finish the lesson with leg aid riding only. It's tough but I get through it by getting her to turn with my legs only. Granted, it's only at a walk but I'm sure I would probably be in big trouble if we were trotting (or faster) with only leg aids. But, riding is not about the hands; it's about riding with your seat and legs. An incredible performance can be seen in Heartland episode 18 of season 5 when Amy auditions for Dark Horse.
Posting Diagonal Jar Tally: 3.5 x $2.00 = $7.00
To date: $19.00
Saturday, November 2, 2013
A Review: The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared
This book was not originally on my list and I haven't heard of it either. It came as a recommendation from my former manager as she said it is "light hearded, whimsical and funny". The only other information available to me was the back cover of the book that read "A reluctant centenarian with a life much like Forrest Gump's (if Gump were an explosives expert with a fondness for vodka) decides it not too late to start over...".
The author Jonas Jonasson is a Swede with a twisted and creative sense of humour. The plot he doctors up is twisted and ridiculous all while inserting itself in actual world history very nicely. This isn't a novel that has an overarching theme throughout the book, imbedded in the characters and plot; it's simply a book that requires some knowledge of historical events, an imagination and a sense of humour. Our story is centered around the main character Allan Karlsson--a centenarian who's as alert as you or I but bored of his life in the old folk's home. So, he decides to leave. He doesn't have a plan or a specific desire to go anywhere. But, when in his life has he ever?
As the reader follows Allan's journey of a series of unfortunate events, for others; we are also taken back to the days when he dined with Mao and Truman. For someone who is well versed in basic modern world history, this is either a sheer delight with the unusual story that unfolds, or is a blasphemous piece of prose that doesn't take history seriously. I think it's fun to see how Jonasson takes some liberties with what might have actually transpired between these historical figures and Allan Karlsson while maintaining the actual historical outcome.
The story itself doesn't have any specific purpose other than to entertain. I'd say if you're looking for something of a light and fun read with no real objective or outcome, this is one of those books. It's amusing and will, at times, make you laugh out loud or stare in disbelief at the absurdity of the events unfolding before you.
The author Jonas Jonasson is a Swede with a twisted and creative sense of humour. The plot he doctors up is twisted and ridiculous all while inserting itself in actual world history very nicely. This isn't a novel that has an overarching theme throughout the book, imbedded in the characters and plot; it's simply a book that requires some knowledge of historical events, an imagination and a sense of humour. Our story is centered around the main character Allan Karlsson--a centenarian who's as alert as you or I but bored of his life in the old folk's home. So, he decides to leave. He doesn't have a plan or a specific desire to go anywhere. But, when in his life has he ever?
As the reader follows Allan's journey of a series of unfortunate events, for others; we are also taken back to the days when he dined with Mao and Truman. For someone who is well versed in basic modern world history, this is either a sheer delight with the unusual story that unfolds, or is a blasphemous piece of prose that doesn't take history seriously. I think it's fun to see how Jonasson takes some liberties with what might have actually transpired between these historical figures and Allan Karlsson while maintaining the actual historical outcome.
The story itself doesn't have any specific purpose other than to entertain. I'd say if you're looking for something of a light and fun read with no real objective or outcome, this is one of those books. It's amusing and will, at times, make you laugh out loud or stare in disbelief at the absurdity of the events unfolding before you.
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